


Everything Changes

by waddiwasiwitch



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: F/M, Royai - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-05
Updated: 2016-04-05
Packaged: 2018-05-31 12:10:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,245
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6469567
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/waddiwasiwitch/pseuds/waddiwasiwitch
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Grumman has some news for Riza and Roy that could change everything.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Everything Changes

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing.
> 
> Rating: Teen for language.
> 
> Notes: I know this is about Grumman and Riza, but Royai took over towards the end. Sorry!

**Everything Changes**

Riza opened the door of the Fuhrer’s office. Her grandfather smiled at her from behind his desk.  
“Ah Riza dear– Mustang will be along shortły. He ran into some trouble on his way here.” His eyes twinkled from behind his spectacles.  
Riza frowned. What sort of trouble could her commanding officer have gotten into since she left him in the office to go for lunch with Rebecca? Who was she kidding? Roy Mustang practically breathed trouble.   
“What did you want to see me for, sir?” she asked.  
Riza always felt uncomfortable when he addressed her informally in the office. Their familial relationship was known to few people outside of their close friends, and that was the way she liked it.   
“Come in! Don’t just stand there in the door way?”  
She entered the office and closed the door gently behind her.   
“Sit down, my dear,” he said. He leaned back in his chair. “And you can dispense with the formalities. Consider it a social visit.”  
“I don’t normally get orders for a social visit,” Riza pointed out as she took a seat.  
The twinkle in his eyes was back and he threw his head back with a laugh. “You remind me of your mother.”  
“I wouldn’t know; I don’t really remember her.”  
His smile disappeared and she instantly regretted her words. She didn’t mean to wound him. She couldn’t really miss a mother that she barely remembered anyway.  
He stroked his beard. “I’m sorry, Riza.”  
She looked away from him and fixed her eyes on her wringing hands in her lap. “Why didn’t you come for me?”   
She didn’t mean to say the words aloud. Still, the unasked question had been on her mind ever since she learned he was her grandfather. They were always careful around one another, tiptoeing around their shared history. When she looked up again, the cheerfulness she associated with the man had disappeared.   
“I really let you both down,” he said sadly.  
“It doesn’t matter,” she insisted. “It’s in the past. I’m not sure why I asked.”  
He didn’t hear her or ignored her. She suspected it was the former.   
He seemed lost in thought, anguish tainting his features. “I didn’t know your mother had passed until long afterward. Every day I regret failing to patch things up with her. When I found out she had a daughter, I thought I was too late to enter your life. I knew your father would never let me near you.”  
With horror, she noticed the wetness pooling in his eyes.  
“Did you ever ask?”  
“No – I just assumed he would turn you against me,” he admitted. He sighed heavily. “And when you joined the military, I wanted to tell you… I was the coward. The longer it went on, the harder it was to confess.”  
Riza nodded swallowing the lump that formed in her throat. “I understand.”  
She had shoved all this painful memories away, locked them up in a box in her head. She didn’t really want to examine them. Not now at least, not here in the Fuhrer’s office.   
Her grandfather starred at her intently. “It’s hard to know what goes on in that head of yours,” he said. “I think there’s only one other person that truly knows you, and that’s young Mustang.”   
“He’s not so young anymore and not am I.” Riza was grateful to seize on a less painful topic.  
“You’re both a hell of a lot younger and spryer than I am.”  
“That’s true,” Riza replied with a smile.  
Grumman rubbed his hands together. “Now, for the real reason why I called you here.”  
Curiosity piqued, Riza sat up straighter in her chair.  
“This morning I signed a document to end the fraternisation laws.”  
His words took a moment to sink in. “That’s unexpected.”  
This was the news she had longed to hear for so long, offering her an option that she never believed she would have. She was glad that she was sitting as she felt lightheaded. _I could… We could.._   
“Isn’t it just!” Grumman chuckled and slapped his right hand on the table.  
“But why?”  
He winked at her. “Maybe I want to get to know that dark haired friend of yours?” He paused for a moment. “Young Rebecca is very pretty. Tell me is she still unattached?”  
Riza laughed. “I think you’ll have a lot of competition.”  
Grumman removed his spectacles and began polishing them. “And you know what this means for you?”  
Riza’s whole body froze. Could he know? Surely, we’re not that careless? She kept silent not trusting herself to speak.  
“This means Roy Mustang will finally ask you to marry him.”  
“I’m not sure why you would say such a thing,” she lied.   
Her poker face would have been perfect if it wasn’t for her burning cheeks. Not for the first time, she cursed her complexion.  
“Come now, Riza. It’s written on both of your faces every time you see one another.” He reached across the table and patted her hand. “Besides, I’ve already promised you to him.”  
Her eyes narrowed and she pulled her hand away. “YOU DID WHAT?”  
“Oh I’m just jesting,” he said. “Though in all seriousness, I have been telling him to marry you for years.”  
Riza’s mouth was agape and she clutched at the arm rests of her chair.  
“Before he knew of our familial relationship,” Grumman continued, “I used to tell him I wanted him to marry my granddaughter.” A smug grin on his face, he continued, “For a man that was known as a ladies man, he showed little interest in meeting a woman that I told him was very beautiful.” He winked. “I also have the benefit of knowing that most of his dates were with Madam Christmas’ girls. You could say I was testing him.”  
She could feel her face burning again. He really was an impossible old man. Many of Roy’s gifts for manipulation had been learned from this man. At times like these she was reminded of her grandfather’s gifts for manipulation.  
“He didn’t know then, of course, that it was you that I was referring to.”  
“With respect, Grandfather, you don’t have the right to marry me off to whomever you which.”  
He nodded. “No I don’t, but it seems you both need a push in the right direction. It’s a shame! You were brave enough to flout the law to stage a coup, but not to fight for love.”  
“That’s completely different,” Riza replied.  
“So you admit it!”  
Riza didn’t say a word. She wasn’t about to admit that she had woken up in Roy’s bed that morning. The Promised Day had changed a lot of things for Riza. Denying her feelings for Roy Mustang was impossible when they had both been so close to losing one another.  
“Don’t let your pride get in the way of your happiness,” he said gently. “It breaks my heart to see you both holding back from what you could have together. Guilt or no, you have to grab love with both hands, because it can slip through your grip so easily.”  
There was a loud knock on the door and Riza jumped. Her eyes went to the door, grateful to be saved from the emotional maelstrom.  
“Come in,” Grumman said.  
The door opened and Roy peered inside. “Ah, you’re here already, Lieutenant.”  
He beamed at her causing her heart to skip a beat. She took a deep breath and forced her gaze back to Grumman who was watching her carefully.  
The older man stood up suddenly almost knocking over the chair in his haste. “Excuse me. I have some business to attend to. I won’t be long.” He gestured to Roy to take a seat.  
“I’ll expect to get a wedding invitation,” he whispered in Riza’s ear as he passed, making sure it was low enough that Roy couldn’t hear.  
Roy didn’t sit down and frowned as Grumman left the room chuckling once again. The door slammed shut and Riza stood up to join him.  
“What am I missing?” Roy rubbed at the back of his neck, one of those childlike gestures that made her want to gather him into her arms.  
“The Fuhrer is going to make an announcement. He has uh repealed the fraternisation laws.”  
Roy’s eyes widened and he starred at her, mouth open a fraction. “Fuck!” His whole face lit up and he put his hands on her shoulders. “Riza, this changes everything!”  
He squeezed her shoulders.   
“He wanted us to be the first to know,” she added.   
“He knows about us?”  
“Not quite – he guessed how we feel, but not that we were bending the rules.”  
Roy smirked. “The crafty bastard.”  
Riza bit at her lip. “So, will you dump me now that we’re legal?”  
He took her hand, put it to his mouth and kissed it. “Never,” he murmured against her skin. She shivered under his touch. He loosened his grip on her hand and reluctantly dropped it.   
Her grandfather was right. This was their chance to take the happiness they had been denied for so long.   
With a grin, Riza got down on one knee, and looked up at a flabbergasted Roy.  
“What are you doing?” he asked.   
“What does it look like?” She took a deep breath to calm the butterflies in her stomach. Please say yes! “Roy Mustang, will you marry me?”  
“What did you say?” Roy took a step backward and a chair clattered to the floor. “Say it again. I just want to check that I didn’t imagine that.”  
“Will you marry me?”  
A huge smile on his face, he said, “Do you really need to ask?”  
“Is that a yes?” She cocked an eyebrow.   
“Yes, Riza.” His eyes bore deep into hers. “Of course it’s yes, you silly woman.”  
He reached down to pull her up to him.  
“No you don’t,” she said and pulled him down towards her instead.   
He landed on his knees next to her with a thump. His hand landed on her knee, the motion almost caused the pair of them to tumble to the ground. Riza started to laugh, a carefree end giddy sound. Roy’s lip twitched and he joined in her laughter. They had not laughed like this since they were children playing in the decaying Hawkeye estate.  
Riza’s sides started to burn from the laughter and she realised just how close they were on the floor. She could almost count his eyelashes. He was looking at her, awe in his eyes. The intensity almost made her look away. It was terrifying but beautiful at the same time. They say that the eyes are windows to the soul; love was laid bare in his gaze. If this was how they always looked at one another no wonder people guessed how they felt.  
Roy leaned in closer. “I love you.” He cradled her face with both hands. His thumbs caressed her jaw and he leaned in to capture her lips in a searing kiss.  
When they came up for air, she leaned her forehead against his. “We should probably get up before my grandfather comes back.”  
Reluctantly, they stood up but they kept close enough that their arms brushed. Roy pulled the chair out for her to sit. She half heartedly rolled her eyes but sat down nonetheless. He straightened the chair he had knocked and pulled it close beside hers before sitting down.  
“I think we’ll have to lay down some rules,” she teased. “You can’t be giving me orders and playing the gentleman at the same time.”  
“Says the woman who wanted to tear my clothes off a moment before,” he said, his voice husky. “I could take you right now on the desk, if you want.”  
She scrunched her nose. “That’s not happening, not on my grandfather’s desk. But maybe later.”   
“I’ll be taking you up on that offer,” he breathed into her ear.   
_Oh shit!_ If Grumman didn’t return soon, she might be tempted to change her mind.  
“I wouldn’t have it any other way.”  
His hair was especially dishevelled and she longed to run her fingers through it. Today was going to be long day.  
“That’s why we’re such a great match.” He threaded their hands together. “We might be broken, but together we’re whole.”  
The door opened and Grumman walked back in. The pair automatically let go.  
“I suppose Riza has told you all about the fraternisation laws, Roy.”  
Roy glanced briefly at Riza before turning back to Grumman and inclined his head.  
“Good, good.” Grumman took a seat opposite them. I will be making the announcement this evening, so I’ll ask that you keep any news to yourself from the time being.”  
Roy wrapped his little finger around hers. “There is no need to worry, we’re more than capable of keeping secrets.”  
“Hmm – I always thought so, but then I always wondered why you didn’t throw caution to the wind.”  
“What makes you think we haven’t?” Roy said.  
“Oho – even better!”   
Before either Riza or Roy could say a word, he added, “Of course, I didn’t hear a single word you said, because that would mean I would condone breaking the law. But tomorrow you can say what you like because it won’t be illegal anymore.” He stood up. “Now go! I order you both to take a half day. I think you’ve a lot to discuss.”

Fin…

  
I really hope you like this! :)


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